


Spectator

by dwarrowdams



Series: Rogues Do It From Behind [11]
Category: Dragon Age (Video Games)
Genre: Gen, Love, M/M, Surprises, confirmed bachelor settles down with elf who tried to kill him, local servants are shocked
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-07
Updated: 2016-03-07
Packaged: 2018-05-25 07:03:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 724
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6185227
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dwarrowdams/pseuds/dwarrowdams
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A servant at Castle Cousland witnesses Gilan and Zevran's relationship and is a little surprised by what she sees.  Post-Origins, pre-Awakening.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Spectator

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry I haven't posted in so long—I've been in the process of moving and my mental health has been worse than normal, so those two things have made it a little trickier to finish the twelve million WIPs I have. Either way, this is done now and I'm reasonably pleased with it, so I hope you enjoy it as well!

Althea had heard all the rumors about the youngest Cousland boy long before she’d met him herself.

 

She’d been fortunate enough to secure a position as a maid in Castle Cousland after the castle was made livable again; in the few months she’d been there, she had heard numerous stories about the teyrn’s younger brother, Gilan Cousland.

 

There were the usual tales, of course—the ones about how he’d defeated the Blight and saved all of Ferelden—but the ones that caught Althea’s attention were those about Gilan’s life before he’d left Highever.  Rumor had it that the younger Cousland brother had been a bit of a rebel.  Apparently he had never taken much interest in diplomacy and had flat-out refused to marry, preferring to limit himself to casual encounters with men as well as women.  At first, Althea had been surprised that so many people knew about his private life, but she’d later learned that Gilan had not been particularly secretive about his trysts.  It was not uncommon, of course—especially among noblemen—but Gilan’s transparency about his sexual preferences was apparently shocking enough to be a topic of conversation a year after he’d left Highever.

 

Of course, Althea was not sure how much she could or couldn’t believe, but she’d heard enough people speak of Gilan Cousland’s commitment issues to convince her that they were an actuality.

 

Still, the rumors had been no preparation for meeting the man himself.

 

He’d come to Highever a few days ago to visit his brother and although Althea’s interactions with him had been fairly limited, Gilan Cousland was certainly not what she had expected.

 

The rumors about his attraction to men had been true enough, it seemed.  He’d brought an elf with him to Highever; in the short time they’d been here, it had become quite clear that the two of them were in some sort of physical relationship.  However, contrary to what Althea had been led to believe, Gilan had barely looked at anyone else since his arrival.  He was always courteous, but nothing about him suggested flirtation—in his interactions with her or with any of the other castle staff.  Ultimately, it left Althea confused about what she’d heard of this man.

 

“Was it all just talk?” Althea asked the cook as they were tidying up the kitchen.

 

“Was all what just talk?”

 

“What people say about the youngest Cousland.  That he’s a flirt.”

 

The cook sighed.  “True enough, from what I heard,” she said.  “Friend of mine used to work as a maid here back before Howe betrayed the teyrn.  She said she’d be a rich woman if she had a silver for every time she saw the youngest Cousland chasing skirts—or trousers, I suppose.”

 

“Hmm,” Althea murmured.  “He doesn’t seem like that at all.”

 

The cook sighed heavily.  “Maker, don’t tell me he’s got you all wrapped round his finger already,” she muttered.  “Last thing I need’s you waking up next to him tomorrow.”

 

“N-no!” Althea said, turning crimson.  “I just…it seems like he’s not interested in anyone but that elf who came with him.”

 

“Huh,” the cook muttered.  “Imagine that.  Out of all the people he’s fucked, an elf’s the one he decides to keep around.”

 

“It seems like he’s in love,” Althea said.  “The way he looks at him…I don’t know, but it looks just like love.”

 

The cook scoffed.  “You sure?”

 

“Sure as I can be.”

 

“With an elf?”

 

“ _Yes_.”

 

“All right,” the cook said.  “This isn’t the first I’ve heard of him and his elf.  Some of the other maids said they can hear the two of them fucking when they walk by his rooms at night.”

 

Althea felt herself flush.  “I’ve heard it too,” she admitted.  “Sometimes…not at night.”

 

The cook snorted.  “With that boy, nothing surprises me.  He’s a good man from what I’ve heard, but a bit lacking with the self-control.”

 

Althea nodded.  From what she’d seen of him, the younger Cousland seemed to have very little shame.  Still, she couldn’t shake the way his entire face had lit up with joy upon seeing the elf.  It was the last thing she’d expected to see from him, but she was glad that she’d glimpsed it, even if she wasn’t the one participating.

 

That was more than most people got, after all.


End file.
